Microsoft Malware Protection Center opens for business

Microsoft's new Malware portal moves out of beta. The Malware Protection …

Hurray for the good (free) stuff: Microsoft has moved its Malware Protection Center out of beta. The site has a bunch of goodies for home users and system administrators alike, including a list of current threats by category divided into Desktop, MSRT detected, e-mail and adware/spyware. The Malware Protection Center is in some respects similar to the SANS Internet Storm Center, but is a bit more user friendly (and of course, Microsoft-centric). Many other antivirus vendors have similar sites, but with the possibility of a more holistic view, Microsoft's MPC could become the one-stop shop for system administrators looking for information on how to defend their networks from the latest exploits.

In addition to current threats you can look up malware by name, submit samples to Microsoft to see if a specific file is infected, and download updates for Microsoft's security products like Defender. Although the underlying idea here is to pimp the various Microsoft security applications and utilities (both the Live and Forefront brands are frequently seen on the site), the MPC is still a solid resource. Microsoft arguably sees more of what's going on in the PC world then anyone, but frequently receives criticism for its lack of communication to end users about how to best avoid or mitigate the ever-growing number of threats.

The Malware Protection Center looks like a good resource for end users that are interested in keeping their systems safe as well as administrators who need to know if a specific file is infected or what the right response to a specific virus would be. If Microsoft keeps the goal security of their products instead of simply using this as a platform to push their security offerings this could end up being a great tool.